Road sign standards



Aug. 15, 1961 c. CARPENTER 2,

ROAD SIGN STANDARDS Filed May 26, 1958 FIG. 3

LOWELL C CARPENTER INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

United States Patent C) 2,995,847 ROAD SIGN STANDARDS Lowell C.Carpenter, 8084 SE. 15th Ave., Portland, Oreg. Filed May 26, 1958, Ser.No. 737,696 Claims. (Cl. 40-125) My invention relates to a collapsibleroad sign standand for display of various kinds of road warning signs.It is of such a design that the sign is freely swingable whicheliminates the tendency of the standard to be blown over or upset bywind gusts created by natural forces and the passage of vehicles.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a road sign standardthat will pivotally mount the warning sign.

A further object of my invention is to provide a portable andcollapsible road sign standard that will not easily be upset by windgusts.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a collapsible andportable road sign standard that is simple, inexpensive and effective.

Other and further objects of my invention will be apparent from thedrawings, specifications and claims herein.

Referring to the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of the collapsible and portable roadsign standard with a sign mounted thereupon.

FIG. 2 is an end elevational view of the collapsible and portable roadsign standard, showing a portion of an arc traced by the lower end ofthe sign as it swings.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary detail end view on an enlarged scale, showingthe mounting of a sign to the pivoted crossbar, the pivotally mountedleg and stop element therefor and the fixed leg.

Referring further to the drawings:

The collapsible sign standard consists of two end plates 10. Each endplate 10, which is preferably formed from flat stock, has rigidlyattached to one side edge thereof a leg 11 which is preferably formedfrom angle iron. To the opposite side edge of the plate a leg 12 ispivotally attached by means of a bolt, pin or rivet 13. Each plate 10 isalso provided with a centrally positioned hole near its top marginaledge and also has a substantially L-shaped stop element 14 rigidlysecured to its lower marginal edge in such a position that the leg 12will be prevented fiom further outward travel once it has reached thefully opened position. If desired, the end plate 10 and stop 14 may beformed as a one-piece unit, for easting these elements as one unit froma ductile steel has been found to be very satisfactory. The leg 12 islikewise preferably formed from angle iron; and a pin, or other stopelement, 15 is inserted into matching holes drilled through said leg 12and the stop element 14. The holes in each of these elements align whenthe leg 12 is in the fully opened position. Pin 15 inserted through saidholes prevents the leg 12 from pivoting toward or closing with leg 11. Alateral brace element 16 ties the two legs 12 together at a point whichis a short distance above the bottom ends or feet 18 of said legs 12.The rigidly secured legs 11 are also tied together by a lateral braceelement 17 secured a short distance above the feet 19 of said legs.Gusset bars 16' are rigidly secured to the lateral brace 16 at each endthereof on an angle of approximately 45 to said brace 16 and theadjacent collapsible leg 12. Gusset bars 16 are likewise secured in thissame relative position at each end of the lateral brace 17 between itand the legs 11.

A sign-carrying bar 20, preferably fabricated from angle iron, ispivotally secured between the end plates 10 near the top marginal edgesthereof by means of element 21 which is preferably a rivet, bolt, pin,etc., inserted 2,995,847 Patented Aug. 15, 1961- through said hole nearthe top marignal edge of each of said plates 10 in such a manner that itcannot be pulled on through the hole, such as having an enlarged headwhich forms a shoulder against the outer surface of the plate 10. Therivet 21, however, will freely move rotat ably within said hole. Theinner end of each of said rivets, etc., 21, is rigidly secured to aportion of the face surface near the end of the sign-carrying bar 20 bywelding or other suitable means. A Washer 22 is provided between eachend of the sign-carrying bar 20 and its adjacent end plate 10, saidwashers being placed upon the rivets 21 before the same are secured tothe sign bar 20. It is preferred to secure the rivets 21 to the fiatface surfaces of the sign bar 20, substantially as shown in thedrawings. However, the inner ends of the rivets 21 may be secured at theinside corner formed on the back surface of the angle iron sign-carryingbar 20. The latter attachment arrangement makes the actual assembly andalignment of the sign bar easier.

A flag holder 24 of any suitable stock such as tubular, etc., is securedmedially of the sign-carrying bar 20 on the back side thereof andpreferably disposed at an angle of approximately 45 thereto. A flag 27may be inserted in the flag holder 24, if desired. Storage or carryingstraps 23, generally hook-shaped in design, are secured near each end ofthe sign bar 20 in such a manner that the whole sign standard may bestored thereby, hooked over the tailgate of a truck, etc. A sign 25 isdetachably secured to the sign bar 20 in any suitable manner such as bybolts 26. Said sign 25 is so positioned that it will clear each of theend plates 10 and will also miss the lateral brace elements 16 and 17when it is caused to swing to and fro by any means such as the action ofnatural wind gusts or by any gusts or air currents caused by the passageof vehicles. The sign 25 should be mounted in such a position upon thesign bar 20 that a substantially greater portion of its vertical weightwill depend below the sign bar. This manner of attachment causes thesign to present an unbalanced surface to any wind gusts or air currents,so that the sign will readily yield to such currents rather than createa pressure against the standard itself, thus tending to cause upset orblowdown. If the sign 25 were to be mounted too closely to the exactvertical midpoint thereof, a substantially balanced arrangement would beeffected which would tend to create the undesirable results of the signassuming an attitude difficult for motorists to see in calm weather andalso of presenting a balanced surface to wind gusts, so' that theleverages against the top portion and lower portion of the sign Wouldtend to offset each other and thereby present an unyielding surface tothe wind.

The foot ends 18 and 19 of the legs 12 and 11, respectively, arepreferably so formed that their bearing surfaces will be disposed atsubstantially a angle to the longitudinal front and rear edges of eachleg. This arrangement presents sharp pointed bearing surfaces to theroad shoulder or roadway upon which the standard may be placed, and thefeet 18 and l9 of said legs thus tend to dig in and further resist thetendency of the standard to be upset or collapsed by wind gusts orcurrents.

It is understood that certain variations or modifications of thedisclosures herein specifically set forth are feasible without departingfrom the spirit of my invention and that I am not, therefore, limitingmyself to the specific disclosures herein set forth which are merelypreferred embodiments of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. As an article of manufacture, a collapsible and portable road signstandard consisting of the combination of: two end plates, each providedwith a hole therethrough near the top marginal edge, a leg fixedlysecured at one marginal side of said plate and in angular relationthereto,

another leg pivotally secured to said end plate in an angular relationthereto at the marginal side thereof opposite the fixed leg, saidpivotal leg being provided with a hole therethrough below the point ofits pivotal attachment, and a stop element fixedly secured to the lowermarginal edge of said end plate at the edge thereof to which thepivotally mounted leg is attached, said stop element being extendedoutwardly beyond said pivotally mounted leg, being bent through an angleat its outer end to overlap the front surface of said leg and beingprovided with a hole therethrough adapted to align with said hole insaid pivotal leg; means insertable in said aligning holes in each ofsaid legs and said stop elements; a lateral brace in combination withangular gussets securing each pivotally mounted leg to the other, saidbrace being positioned near the lower endsof said pivotally mountedlegs; a lateral brace in combination with angular gussets securing eachrigidly attached leg to the other, said lateral brace being secured nearthe lower ends of said brace; a sign-carrying oar positioned betweensaid end plates and the holes therethrough; pivotal means insertedthrough the holes in said end plates and secured to said signcarryingbar; means medially of said end plates adapted to attach a road Warningsign to said sign-carrying bar; two straps rigidly secured to saidsign-carrying bar, one near each end thereof, said straps being adaptedfor storage or, selectively, carrying purposes; tubular means disposedupon and at an angular relation to said signcarrying bar mediallythereof, a flag disposed in said tubular means; and a foot at thelowermost end of each leg, said'foot disposed at substantially a 90angle to the front and rear longitudinal edges of the leg.

2. As an article of manufacture, a collapsible and portable road signstandard consisting of the combination of: two end plates, each providedwith a hole therethrough near the top marginal edge and with anintegrally formed stop element extending beyond one of the side edgesthereof, said stop element having its outer end bent at an angle towardthe stop element on the other end plate and having a hole therethroughnear its bent end, aleg fixedly secured at the opposite marginal side ofsaid end plate and in angular relationship thereto, another legpivotally secured to said end plate at an angular relation thereto atthe same marginal side thereof on which the said stop element is formed,said leg being provided with a hole therethrough below its point ofpivotal attachment aligning with said hole in said pivotal leg when saidleg is fully opened and adjacent to the bent outer end of said stopelement; means insertable in said aligning holes in said leg and saidstop element; a lateral brace in combination with angular gussetssecuring each pivotally mounted leg to the other, said brace beingpositioned near the lower ends of said pivotally mounted legs; a lateralbrace in combination with angular gussets securing each rigidly attachedleg to the other, said lateral brace being secured near the lower endsof said brace; a sign-carrying bar positioned between said end platesand the holes therethrough; pivotal mounting means inserted through theholes in said end plates and secured to said sign-carrying bar; a roadwarning sign to said sign-carrying bar; two straps rigidly secured tosaid sign-carrying bar, one near each end thereof, said straps beingadapted for storage or, selectively, carrying purposes; tubular meansdisposed upon and at an angular relation to said sign-carrying barmedially thereof; a flag disposed in said tubular means; and a foot atthe lowermost end of each leg, said foot disposed to present a sharpedge to a road surface.

3. In a collapsible and portable road sign standard the combination of:two end plates, each provided with a hole therethrough near the topmarginal edge; a leg pivotally secured at one marginal edge of eachofsaid plates, said leg being provided with a hole therethrough below thepoint of its pivotal attachment; a stop element secured to the lowermarginal edge ofeach end plate, bent inwardly at aright angle to itselfat a point outwardly from said pivotally attached leg and being providedwith a hole therethrough adapted to align with said hole in said pivotalleg; means secured to said stop element and insertable in said aligningholes in each leg and stop element adapted to retain said pivotal leg inthe fully extended position; a rigidly attached leg secured at the edgeof each end plate opposite the pivotally mounted leg; brace elementssecuring each pivotally mounted leg to the other; brace elementssecuring each rigidly attached leg to the other; a sign-carrying barpositioned between said end plates; pivotal mounting means insertedthrough the holes in said end plates, secured to pivotally carry saidsign bar between said end plates; a road warning sign detachablysecuredmedially of said pivotally mounted sign bar; means rigidlysecured medially of said sign-carrying bar adapted for storage or,selectively, carrying said road sign standard; tubular means disposedupon and medially of said sign-carrying bar, said means adapted to carrya warning flag; and a sharp foot at the lowermost end of each leg ofsaid standard.

4. in a collapsible and portable road sign standard the combination of:two end plates, each provided with a hole therethrough near the topmarginal edge and with an integrally formed stop element, bentinwardlyat its outermost end and extended beyond one of the side edges thereof;a leg fixedly secured at the marginal edge of each of said plates;another leg pivotally secured to the opposite marginal edge of each ofsaid plates, inwardly from and adjacent to the bent outer end of saidstop element, said leg being provided with a hole therethrough below itspoint of pivotal attachment, said stop element being provided with ahole therethrough adapted to align with said hole in said pivotal leg;means secured to said stop element and insertable in said aligning holesin said leg and said stop element adapted to retain said pivotal leg inthe fully extended position; brace elements securing each pivotallymounted leg to the other; brace elements securing each rigidly mountedleg to the other; a sign-carrying bar positioned between said endplates; pivotal mounting means inserted through the holes in said endplate and secured to said sign bar between said end plates; fasteningmeans medially of said end plates and on said sign-carrying bar; a roadwarning sign detachably secured to said sign bar by said fasteningmeans; means rigidly secured medially of said sign-carrying bar adaptedfor storage or, selectively, carrying said road sign standard; tubularcarrying means disposed upon and medially of said signcarrying bar; awarning flag mounted in said tubular carrying means; and a foot at thelowermost end of each leg of said standard, said foot adapted to presenta sharp surface to a roadway.

5. As an article of manufacture: a collapsible road sign adapted to foldfor moving from place to place; a pair of supporting legs; a connectingplate by which each pair of legs is held in a predetermined position ofone leg to the other, one leg of each pair being rigidly attached to itsconnecting plate and the other leg of each pair being swivelly mountedupon said connecting plate; a stop element rigidly secured to saidconnecting plate and adapted to limit the outward movement of theswivelly connected leg from its respective leg rigidly attached to theconnecting plate; a brace element between the swivelly mountedsupporting legs; another brace element between the supporting legsrigidly mounted; a sharp pointed foot element at the bottom of eachsupporting leg, adapted to prevent creeping of any of said legs upon thesurface supporting the collapsible sign; a panel adapted for signdisplay purposes; a swivelly mounted panel supporting means between thesupporting legs connecting plates, said sign display panel being somounted upon the swivelly mounted supporting means that a substantiallylarger portion of both its weight and area shall be below its attachmentto its swivelly mounted supporting means; a fiag holder attachmentmounted upon the pivotal supporting means; and a pair of hook-shapedcarrying straps extending upwardly from the swivelly mounted supportingelement to which the sign-bearing panel is attached.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,135,241 Woods Apr. 13, 1915 1,726,662 Gofi Sept. 3, 1929 1,981,268Heiser Nov. 20, 1934

